Joanne Cardsley

Joanne Cardsley
Hollyoaks character
Portrayed by Rachel Leskovac
Duration 2015–
First appearance 17 September 2015
Introduced by Bryan Kirkwood
Classification Present; regular
Profile
Occupation Solicitor
Home 5 Oakdale Drive, Flat 3

Joanne Cardsley is a fictional character from the British soap opera Hollyoaks, played by Rachel Leskovac. The character made her first on-screen appearance on 17 September 2015. Joanne's arrival on-screen was not announced prior to broadcast. It was later reported she had joined the show as a regular cast member. Producer Bryan Kirkwood was glad to cast Leskovac because he admired her previous work. Joanne is introduced as an old friend of Simone Loveday (Jacqueline Boatswain). She is characterised as an intelligent and successful solicitor but has a troubled personal life. Driven by loneliness she concocts schemes and behaves in a manipulative manner.

Her main storyline has seen her become fixated on stealing Simone's husband Louis Loveday (Karl Collins). The pair had an affair fourteen years earlier which was depicted during flashback scenes. However Joanne wants to resume the relationship despite Louis being adamant that he wants nothing to do with her. Since her introduction Joanne has tried to seduce Louis on numerous occasions, blackmailed him and thrown herself in-front of his moving car. She has locked Simone in a van, sabotaged her relationship and managed to move into her home. In addition Joanne has slept with their son Zack Loveday (Duayne Boachie) and manipulated his fake "daughter" Sonia Albright (Kiza Deen) to secure her place in the Loveday household. The character's actions have led to critics of the genre branding her as scheming, devious and a bunny boiler. Hollyoaks press team even released a statement claiming Joanne is "one of the most talked-about bunny boilers in soaps."

Casting

Leskovac had to complete a screen test with Karl Collins who plays Louis Loveday prior to securing the part. They had never met but worked on the scene prior to recording and she believed they instantly worked well together.[1] The character debuted on-screen unannounced during a special episode of Hollyoaks which focused on the backstory of the established Loveday family. It was later reported that Leskovac had signed a contract to appear on the show on a regular basis. The actress released a statement expressing her excitement to be playing a "challenging" role in the show.[1] Producer Bryan Kirkwood was happy to have secured Leskovac because he had admired her work on fellow soap opera Coronation Street.[2]

Development

Characterisation and introduction

“ "Smart, driven but ultimately damaged, Joanne is a deeply troubled soul who’s been waiting all her life for her happy ending. Working as a successful duty solicitor, she has achieved everything she’s ever wanted professionally, but now she is looking to settle down with Mr. Perfect. Hopeless loneliness combined with relentless determination will make the perfect combo to rip the Lovedays apart, but one thing’s for sure: Joanne is here to get what she wants."[3] ”

Joanne is characterised as career a driven character who have achieved success in her legal career. But emotionally she is troubled and through her loneliness she schemes to get what she wants.[3] Leskovac has described Joanne as an "interesting character with a lot of depth and intensity but she's also very vulnerable too."[1] Leskovac has described her character as an intelligent woman. She can often let her heart rule her head which helps to create the storylines writers pen for Joanne. At the point she arrives in the show Leskovac acknowledged the character as a "home wrecker". In Joanne's backstory she had split with her husband and is a "lonely" character.[4]

Joanne was introduced during an episode set in 2001, the day that Lisa Loveday was abducted. Prior to the episode airing it was revealed that Lisa's father was hiding a secret about his whereabouts that day. Joanne features in the episode as Simone Loveday's (Jacqueline Boatswain) best friend.[5] During the episode it was revealed that Louis and Joanne were having an affair at the time of Lisa's disappearance.[1]

Manipulating the Lovedays

Karl Collins plays Joanne's ex-lover Louis Loveday

In October 2015, producer Kirkwood revealed that he was keen for the Lovedays to have a strong marriage. But believed they should have made mistakes and the introduction of Joanne would help to explore Louis' past.[2] Sophie Dainty from Digital Spy reported that Joanne would arrive in Hollyoaks village and blackmail Louis. The story begins as Louis received a letter warning him that his past will be exposed. He then receives a photograph which promts him to meet up with his blackmailer who is revealed to be Joanne. She explains that her ex-husband has left her in debt and she needs £5000 from Louis or she will expose their affair. He gives her £200 which angers Joanne and she threatens to visit Simone.[6] Louis is nervous about Joanne's presence in the village and starts to argue with Simone. Joanne informs Louis she will leave and asks her to join him for a drink to say goodbye. This makes Joanne believe that there are still feelings between them and she decides to stay.[7] Writers then played the character thinking of schemes to make Louis resume their former affair. Louis tries to forget about Joanne's blackmail but she sends him a card which he hides from Simone. Joanne then sneaks into the Lovedays home and dresses provocatively to seduce Louis. When Louis returns home he is shocked and angered by Joanne's behaviour.[8]

Leskovac told Laura Heffernan from Inside Soap that she expected fans of Louis and Simone to be unhappy with Joanne's meddling. But she thought it made Joanne an interesting character to portray. Joanne visits Simone and offers her a job at her law firm. This leaves Louis worried that Joanne will reveal the truth and he tries to persuade Simone not to accept the job.[4] Joanne then decides to try and seduce Louis once again. Leskovac believed that her character was not crazy but rather "just truly, madly, deeply in love with Louis". She explained that Joanne is fixated on the chemistry the pair used to have. Her actions are not full of malice but she has "tunnel vision" where Louis is concerned. Louis sternly rejects her latest advances which hurts Joanne's feelings. The actress said that her character is desperate to remind Louis of what they used to have. But the problem is that she is holding onto something that happened years before and perceiving their affair to be more than it was.[4] She then causes more trouble by visiting Simone and making Louis believe she is about to reveal the truth and then doing the opposite. Leskovac concluded that her character is "on a mission to win Louis back at any cost."[4]

Collins was upset with the storyline because he believed the Lovedays were a great family whose love could be seen on-screen. He had expected them to "live happily ever after". But Collins was happy with the opportunity to portray the drama Joanne and Louis' affair created.[9] Boatswain said that the scenario of her best friend Joanne and husband Louis having an affair would leave her devastated.[10] Writers began to escalate drama and make Joanne's schemes more extreme. Simone plans to watch her son Zack Loveday (Duayne Boachie) play an important football match. But Joanne becomes jealous and steals notes Simone has prepared for a legal presentation. Simone has to miss the match to rewrite her notes. Later Joanne locks Simone in her van and invites herself to stay with the Lovedays claiming her boiler is broken. With Simone trapped in her van she takes over a romantic meal Louis had prepared for his wife.[11] When Louis and Simone argue Joanne seizes the opportunity to try and seduce him again. Having failed once again Joanne decides she needs to gain more leverage on Louis and jumps infront of his car. Louis is left fearing that he has killed Joanne, but she is later discharged from hospital.[12] Joanne keeps the fact Louis was driving a secret from Simone giving her another secret to use against him.[13]

Hollyoaks then began promoting a story in which Zack would be unfaithful with a mystery woman. Theresa McQueen (Jorgie Porter) catches her boyfriend and the woman having sex. The show refused to make the identity of the female public.[14] When the episode was broadcast it was revealed to be Joanne in another scheme.[15] Boachie told Sarah Ellis of Inside Soap that his character is "devastated" to be caught with Joanne. He finds it "really embarrassing" and asks Theresa to keep it a secret.[16] A Hollyoaks publicist said Louis told Joanne "in no uncertain terms he loves Simone and his family and wants nothing to do with her. Sleeping with Zack and then stepping out in front of Louis’ car shows how desperate she has become.”[15] Simone finds Joanne's bra hidden behind her sofa and realises that she has slept with Zack. She orders Joanne to move out and later throws pasta sauce over her. This prompts Joanne to reveal that Louis was driving the car that ran her over.[13]

Storylines

Joanne sends threatening letters and photographs to Louis. She arrives in the village to ask Louis for money to help her out of debt. He cannot afford the amount and she threatens to tell Simone they have had an affair. Louis pays her off and she agrees to leave, but returns believing Louis still has feelings for her. She tries to seduce him on a number occasions and he orders her to leave the village. She visits Simone pretending to have be new to the village and offers Simone a job at her legal firm. Louis begs Joanne to leave and orders Simone to refuse the job offer. Joanne persuades Simone to ignore Louis and take the job. Joanne convinces Simone to tell Louis she is going to stay with her mother to conceal her attendance at a legal presentation. Joanne engineers a scenario so Louis discovers that Simone has been lying which causes drama in the Loveday's home. Joanne uses the opportunity to try and get closer to Louis. She then locks Simone in a van and tries to seduce Louis who rejects her again. Joanne agrees to leave, but as Louis is driving away she throws herself in front of his car and runs her over accidentally.

Joanne survives and while in hospital Simone insists that she come and live with her until she is recovered. Joanne then sleeps with Zack and Theresa catches them together. She threatens to tell everyone but later changes her mind. Louis finds out but agrees not to tell Simone. When Zack goes on a date, Simone comes home to meet his new love interest. She finds a bra hidden behind the sofa and demands to know who owns it. Joanne later arrives and claims the bra belongs to her. This exposes Joanne and Zack fling and she forces Joanne to leave her home. Joanne tries to apologise but Simone feels too betrayed that she chose to sleep with her son. The pair argue, Simone pours pasta sauce over Joanne who reacts by revealing that Louis ran her over. Joanne gives legal representation to Wayne (Nathan Whitfield) and he requests that Sonia Albright (Kiza Deen) is his alibi. He reveals that she is an impostor and is not Louis and Simone's long-lost daughter. Knowing that seeking out Lisa will expose her real identity, Joanne concocts a plan. She writes a false statement and tricks Wayne into signing it. She threatens to ensure that he spends more time in prison by sabotaging his case. He agrees to abide by her rules and Joanne pretends to be sympathetic towards Sonia. She thanks her and convinces Simone to allow Joanne to move back in resulting in Joanne's scheme being successful.

Reception

A What's on TV reporter observed Joanne's subtle scheming opining that "it seems she’s slowly driving a wedge between the Lovedays."[17] Sophie Dainty (Digital Spy) said that Joanne had been "wreaking havoc" in the show and branded her a "manipulative character" with "scheming antics".[18] Duncan Lindsay from Metro stated that "unstable Joanne is fast becoming one of soap’s classic bunny boilers." He added that Joanne had pulled "out all of the stops" to snare Louis from Simone.[12] Susan Hill from the Daily Star branded the character a "bunny boiler" and a "crazy blonde".[15] An Inside Soap reporter called Joanne "scheming" and "jealous", their colleague added that she is a "devious" character.[11][19] Joanne's schemes have attracted much discussion amongst viewers of the genre. A Hollyoaks insider said "Joanne has quickly become one of the most talked-about bunny boilers in soaps".[15]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Jagger, David (14 October 2014). "Bradford actress Rachel Leskovac lands Hollyoaks role". Telegraph & Argus. (Newsquest). Retrieved 12 March 2016.
  2. 1 2 "We had some really fierce discussions about who the 'Gloved Hand Killer' would be!". Inside Soap (Hearst Magazines UK) (42): 42, 45. 24–30 October 2015.
  3. 1 2 "Joanne Cardsley (Rachel Leskovac)". Channel 4. (Channel Four Television Corporation). November 2015. Retrieved 12 March 2016.
  4. 1 2 3 4 Heffernan, Laura (23–29 January 2016). "Joanne is just truly, madly, deeply in love with Louis". Inside Soap (Hearst Magazines UK) (3): 44, 45.
  5. ↑ Kikelly, Daniel (16 September 2015). "Hollyoaks flashback to reveal Loveday secrets: 5 questions that will be answered tonight". Digital Spy. (Hearst Magazines UK). Retrieved 12 March 2016.
  6. ↑ Dainty, Sophie (17 November 2015). "Hollyoaks spoilers: Louis Loveday to be blackmailed by a face from his past". Digital Spy. (Hearst Magazines UK). Retrieved 12 March 2016.
  7. ↑ Dainty, Sophie (24 November 2015). "Hollyoaks spoilers: Louis Loveday's ex-lover Joanne will hope for a reunion". Digital Spy. (Hearst Magazines UK). Retrieved 12 March 2016.
  8. ↑ Kilkelly, Daniel (14 December 2015). "Hollyoaks spoilers: Joanne Cardsley tries to seduce Louis Loveday tonight". Digital Spy. (Hearst Magazines UK). Retrieved 12 March 2016.
  9. ↑ "I have my old afro framed on the wall! Karl Collins... is at your mercy!". Inside Soap (Hearst Magazines UK) (10): 52, 53. 12–18 March 2016.
  10. ↑ "Simone takes herself far too seriously! Jacqueline Boatswain... is at your mercy!". Inside Soap (Hearst Magazines UK) (7): 54, 55. 20–26 February 2016.
  11. 1 2 "Joanne's got a plan!". Inside Soap (Hearst Magazines UK) (5): 29. 6–12 February 2016.
  12. 1 2 Lindsay, Duncan (9 February 2016). "Hollyoaks spoilers: Horror for Louis as Joanne leaps in front of his car". Metro. (DMG Media). Retrieved 12 March 2016.
  13. 1 2 Dainty, Sophie (23 February 2013). "Hollyoaks spoilers: Simone Loveday takes revenge on Joanne...but what exactly does she know?". Digital Spy. (Hearst Magazines UK). Retrieved 12 March 2016.
  14. ↑ Kilkelly, Daniel (9 February 2016). "Hollyoaks spoilers: Theresa McQueen will catch Zack Loveday getting steamy with another woman". Digital Spy. (Hearst Magazines UK). Retrieved 12 March 2016.
  15. 1 2 3 4 Hill, Susan (21 February 2016). "Hollyoaks: Simone gets saucy with joanne". Daily Star. (Northern & Shell). Retrieved 12 March 2016.
  16. ↑ Ellis, Sarah (13–19 February 2016). "Zack's sex shame!". Inside Soap (Hearst Magazines UK) (6): 14, 15.
  17. ↑ "Joanne makes herself comfortable with Louis". What's on TV. (IPC Media). 12 February 2016. Retrieved 12 March 2016.
  18. ↑ Dainty, Sophie (20 January 2016). "Hollyoaks star Rachel Leskovac defends scheming Joanne: "She's just deeply in love with Louis"". Digital Spy. (Hearst Magazines UK). Retrieved 12 March 2016.
  19. ↑ "Simone sees red!". Inside Soap (Hearst Magazines UK) (6): 25. 27 February – 4 March 2016.

External links

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